In my religion Chukwu is a loving father and need not be feared by those who do his will” (Achebe 110). The ideas on how the people look up to their gods differ greatly. Christians believe that he is loving and merciful. The Igbo people believe that they should fear the gods. Although they both share the same basic concepts of their god, they differ in the idea of multiple gods and how they should feel about their primary
They genuinely thought they were doing good and helping Africa, but they were actually just hurting it in the long run. “How can [the white man understand] when he does not even speak our tongue? But he says that our customs are bad; and our own brothers who have taken up his religion also say that our customs are bad. How do you think we can fight when our own brothers have turned against us? (Achebe 129)” Chenowa Achebe speaks his thoughts on imperialism here by saying that even though the white imperialists thought they were doing good, they didn’t bother to even try to understand the natives’ feelings towards them.
However, Okonkwo doesn’t take to the white people as easily as the rest of his tribe. He tries to lead a revolt against them that ultimately fails, leaving Okonkwo stripped of his dignity and his position in his tribe. While exiled, he changed from having a position of respect, influence and power, to no longer believing in his chi and taking his life because he could not let go of his old culture and conform to the new one
So, Okonkwo beat Nwoye hoping it would be enough for him to change back to his first religion. Although Okonkwo beat him, Nwoye did not convert back to his religion. Okonkwo was wrong for beating his son just because of his choice of religion. Okonkwo is very prone to following the opinion of others in his
The fictional character of Mr. Raymond is a great embodiment of the mental state of the silent few in America that knew that Jim Crow was wrong, but didn’t have the means or willpower to end it. Those people wanted to stop such perverse acts from occurring, but could not, due to the fear of social
It’s more entertaining than surprising to watch John struggle with his pride, as he attempts to convince himself that he is a man of God who simply committed a deed as a will of social deterioration, rather than a blasphemous mistake that would call into question his character. Christian men of the seventeenth century were entirely reliant on the social constructs of not only having a tough stereotypically male nature, but also holding on to faith as a means of filling in his heart. This is seen by his demand that Mary tell Judge Danforth the women are liars, as he is not willing to complete the task himself. Danforth, sees through the plot and traps John by telling him that his wife, Elizabeth, is pregnant. The moment is furthered when Abigail enters the room, and gets rid of John’s hope at convicting her by accusing Mary herself of being a
In Things Fall Apart Okonkwo’s eldest son Nwoye is very different than his father. He is not aggressive and manly but more effeminate. Okonkwo feels like Nwoye is a disappointment because he doesn’t follow his values while Nwoye loses all respect for his father because he doesn’t want to live in his shadow. Later on, Christian missionaries come to their village and Nwoye is taught that there is a better way to live and is amazed by it. The missionaries speak about a story of “...brothers who lived in darkness and in fear, ignorant love of God” (Achebe), which really touched Nwoye and made him find peace in leaving his father’s teachings and convert to
In Purple Hibiscus, Kambili suffers from her father’s abuse and his lack of appreciation for his origins like his father and Igbo culture/religion. Papa abhors anything related to the Igbo culture because he believes the Igbo are heathens. He tries to be a “pure” Catholic, but this causes him to stray from where he wants to go because he obsesses over the idea of being an extremely devout Catholic, and his children suffer the worst from his fixations. Aunty Ifeoma, however, is also Catholic, but she still has the respect for her culture and background, which she passes on to her children. Because Kambili and Jaja are maltreated at home from their devout father, they start to crave freedom and knowledge of their culture when they’re exposed
The decision to abandon his son becomes another example of Igbo’s inability to deal with change. By changing his religion, Nwoye disregard his father in the worst way. But Okonkwo cannot fight against his son because he is uninformed about the Christian culture. It seems that committing suicide is Okonkwo’s way of going against Christianity. But unfortunately this act not only takes his life but it also takes away the respect of Umuofia for
He thought that God punished him just because he was not a believer. During his life on the isolated island, he reflected on God and religion. Then, he began to realize that this accident was not a punishment for him. Rather than a punishment, it was God’s will.God had pity on him. God wanted him to not only be a good believer but also find his way to providence.Therefore, he experienced these tribulations.